A Hurricane in 1928 Kills Thousands of People South of Lake Okeechobee When the Earthen Dike Fails

Caloosahatchee River flood waters, 1936 Panel 1.7 A hurricane in 1928 kills thousands of people south of Lake Okeechobee when the earthen dike fails. Zora Neale Hurston describes the storm in her book eir Eyes Were Watching God: “e monstropolous beast had left his bed … the sea was walking the earth with a heavy heel.” In its wake, Everglades Drainage District construction ends. e Great Depression begins one Belle Glade Experiment Station, 1928 hurricane year later, and Florida’s land boom goes bust. By 1931, the Everglades Drainage District defaults on its bonds. e U.S. Army Corps of Engineers intervenes to survey the land, and subsequently, federal government participation is required in future development of the region. By 1930, Florida has almost 1.5 million residents. A large number of residents are moving into South Florida, with almost 150,000 residents recorded in Dade County. 1928 “The Storm of 1928” pushes water out of Lake Okeechobee. Several thousand people drown in the small farming communities bordering its southern rim. Wind tides on the lake cause such deadly overflows that the state forms the Okeechobee Drainage District to prevent future destruction. Working with the U.S. Corps of Engineers, the Drainage District improves flood control through construction of floodway channels, control gates and major levees along the lake’s shores. 1930 1928 hurricane kills thousands of people Herbert Hoover Dike is authorized. The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1930 authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build a series of levees, gated culverts and locks to encompass Lake Okeechobee. Constructed between 1932 and 1938, the seven-year public works project boosts the region’s economy during the peak years of the Great Depression. 1931 Lake Okeechobee Herbert Hoover Dike construction Droughts seize South Florida. Prolonged dry spells that will last almost 15 years significantly lower groundwater levels. This, coupled with overdrainage, allows salt water to move into freshwater supplies and threaten coastal cities’ drinking water. Land normally under water emerges. Inland, thousands of acres drained dry now ignite, burning off and consuming the precious muck soil. 1928 1930 1931 1935 1936 1935 1936 “Labor Day Hurricane” Congress passes Flood Control Act of 1936. hits Florida Keys. The personal and financial losses caused by the Only 40 miles wide, the violent hurricanes of 1926 and 1928 illuminate the need for storm reaches a wind velocity more than just routine drainage. Canals performing of 120 mph with gusts up to efficiently during typical rain events are recognized 250 mph when it hits the as unable to absorb excess water in extreme Tavernier-Islamorada area. More weather. The Flood Control Act directs the federal than 400 lives are lost — mostly government “to improve or participate in the World War I veterans sent to Key improvement of waters for flood control purposes, West to build the overseas if the populations of surrounding areas would suffer highway. Their intended rescue without these renovations.” Flood control joins train is swept off its track by the navigation and drainage on the list of water Rescue train swept off the tracks storm surge, which reaches 18 management problems demanding solutions. by the 1935 Labor Day hurricane feet for a distance of 21 miles..

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